Yetgeul › Wujing Qishu (The Seven Military Classics) — the six besides the Sunzi › Six Secret Teachings

Six Secret Teachings, Leopard Teaching — When the Enemy Is Martial六韜 敵武

Wujing Qishu (The Seven Military Classics) — the six besides the Sunzi 武經七書 · Ascribed to Jiang Taigong · ascribed to Huang Shigong · Wei Liao · Wu Qi · Sima Rangju · Li Jing · Warring States to Tang (4th century BC to 7th century AD) · 1 passages · 210 Chinese characters · reading time 0.8 min

Wujing Qishu (The Seven Military Classics) — the six besides the Sunzi Six Secret Teachings The six that remain when the Art of War of Sunzi is taken out of the seven military books the Song set as the texts for examining military officers. The Six Secret Teachings is sixty chapters of questions and answers in which King Wen and King Wu ask Taigong Wang, running from the governing of a state to chariots, cavalry, battle in the open and the crossing of water; the Three Strategies is three short books said to have been given to Zhang Liang by Huang Shigong; the Wei Liaozi is twenty-four chapters setting down in detail the military orders and the squads of five and ten around the time of Qin; the Wuzi is six chapters of Wu Qi's answers to Marquis Wu of Wei; the Methods of the Sima is five chapters handing down the military rites of before the Spring and Autumn period; and Questions and Replies with Li Weigong is three books in which Taizong of Tang and Li Jing go back and forth over the unorthodox and the orthodox, the empty and the full, the frontier peoples and the Han, and attack and defense. "Arms are an instrument of ill omen," "bring the enemy to you and do not be brought to him," and "a thousand chapters and ten thousand phrases do not go beyond that one phrase" all come from here. The remaining six streams of the military school, read after the Art of War, are gathered in one place.

1When the enemy is many and skilled in arms — how to set a beaten army on its feet again

武王問太公曰：「引兵深入諸侯之地，猝遇敵人，甚眾且武。武車驍騎，繞我左右。吾三軍皆震，走不可止。為之奈何？」太公曰：「如此者謂之敗兵。善者以勝，不善者以亡。」武王曰：「為之奈何？」太公曰：「伏我材士強弩，武車驍騎為之左右，常去前後三里。敵人逐我，發我車騎，衝其左右。如此，則敵人擾亂，吾走者自止。」武王曰：「敵人與我車騎相當，敵眾我寡，敵強我弱。其來整治精銳，吾陣不敢當。為之奈何？」太公曰：「選我材士強弩，伏於左右，車騎堅陣而處。敵人過我伏兵，積弩射其左右；車騎銳兵，疾擊其軍，或擊其前，或擊其後。敵人雖眾，其將必走。」武王曰：「善哉！」

King Wu asked Taigong, "I lead the army deep into the land of the feudal lords and meet the enemy all at once, and he is very many and skilled in arms besides. His martial chariots and swift horsemen ring us about to left and right, and all our three armies tremble and run and cannot be stopped. What is to be done?" Taigong said, "Such men are called a beaten army. He who is skillful wins by this, and he who is not is destroyed by it." King Wu said, "What is to be done?" Taigong said, "Lay our able men and strong crossbows in ambush, and make the martial chariots and swift horsemen the left and the right, keeping them always three li from front and rear. When the enemy pursues us, send out our chariots and horsemen to charge his left and right. Do this, and the enemy is thrown into disorder, and those of ours who were running halt of themselves." King Wu said, "The enemy's chariots and horsemen match our own, and the enemy is many while we are few, the enemy strong while we are weak. He comes in good order and keen, and our line dares not stand against him. What is to be done?" Taigong said, "Pick out our able men and strong crossbows and lay them in ambush to left and right, and let the chariots and horsemen hold a firm line. When the enemy passes our hidden troops, let the massed crossbows shoot at his left and right, and let the chariots and horsemen and keen troops strike his army swiftly, some at his front and some at his rear. Though the enemy be many, his general is sure to run." King Wu said, "Good."

‹ Six Secret Teachings, Leopard Teaching — Crow and Cloud Troops in the MountainsContentsSix Secret Teachings, Leopard Teaching — When the Enemy Is Strong ›Listen to this piece